The Afterlife During the Bakumatsu
by MiekoYagyu
Summary: Ghosts were born during the Bakumatsu, but two are special...


**Disclaimer:** If I owned Rurouni Kenshin, I'd be a very, VERY happy 13-year-old. But, sadly, Nobuhiro Watsuki holds that honor.

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During the Bakumatsu era, many ghosts were created. Many of those ghosts were born by Battosai's swords. However, there were two ghosts that personally knew this hitokiri, but had died around 7 years before the start of this bloodbath.

"What is he DOING, anata?! What is my little Shinta doing?!" screamed a red-haired woman at her purple-eyed husband.

"Koiishi, his name's not Shinta anymore, remember? The big swordsman renamed him Kenshin," winced the husband.

"I'm his mother, and I shall call him what _I _named him. Shinta."

"Aki, sweetheart, please listen-"

"Don't you _Aki sweetheart _me, Kyoitchi! I'm appalled at what that swordsman taught him. Teaching that horrid sword-style, Hiten-whatever! Teaching him to kill!" After this she started to sob on her husband's ethereal shoulder. He started to awkwardly pat her back, unused to having to show signs of intimacy.

"There, there, I'm sure he'll make this through in one piece. Yes, that swordsman nicked him on the face, and yes, that Saitou stabbed him through his shoulder, but other than that he's fine. I saw him pick up a pretty-looking lady the other day! Boy, is she the spitting image of the Yukishiro ghost lady over there," soothed Kyoitchi.

"That's because Tomoe is Reiko Yukishiro's daughter, you idiot," glared Aki, getting off his shoulder.

"Oh."

"Anyway, it's his mind I'm worried about. He isn't like my sweet, little baby anymore. And when he found Tomoe, he had just slashed a man in half! Shinta hated the sight of blood. But then, he didn't even gag or became dizzy! The streets were just FLOWING, anata!" wailed Aki.

"He'll be fine, koiishi. Didn't that nice kami say he was going to end up great, happy with a good-looking wife and kid?"

"He also was drunk at the time."

"That doesn't matter. Kami never lie. It's against there, uh, contract, or something."

"Kami don't have contracts."

"Now you're just being disagreeable, koiishi."

"I'm just so worried. Shinta is so _different_ now. He's like a whole, different person. I miss him. I try to watch over him, like when I pushed the swordsman to action when those awful bandits attacked. But what becomes of it? Shinta gets renamed, abused by that giant, and then runs off to become a murderer. I'm a horrible mother. It's all my fault!!" Aki wept.

"C'mon, koiishi. Lighten up. You're making this desolate place even gloomier. If you don't, I'll make you say it," grinned Kyoitchi.

"No. I won't say it. I refuse."

"But it's so cute. It's your catchphrase. Shinta loved to hear you say it." Kyoitchi knew he was close to having his lovely wife say it.

"Okay… oro," mumbled Aki.

"What was that? I didn't quite hear you." Kyoitchi wanted to hear Aki say it loud.

"I said oro, you bumbling, purple-eyed, farmer-peasant! Don't make me repeat myself! I'll make you sleep on the floor, you jerk!" Kyoitchi turned paler (if possible) than he already was.

"Koiishi, you wouldn't be so cruel. Would you?" he peeped.

Aki sighed. "No. Come on, you. Let's watch what Shinta's doing now."

"Don't you mean Kenshin? Or Battosai?" Kyoitchi said, unknowing he was digging his grave under the grave he had just dug.

"I NAMED HIM SHINTA! NOT KENSHIN, AND MOST CERTAINLY NOT BATTOSAI!" bellowed Aki.

"Sorry, koiishi-sama, Aki-dono, delight of my eyes! Please don't murder me! I'm too young to die twice!"

"Pleading shall get you nowhere, _anata_!" Aki picked up a ghostly rock to throw at her husband's ghostly head.

"Nooooooooooooooo! Save me Yukishiro-san! My wife is on the rampage; she's going to-!" At that, his angry spouse caught Kyoitchi. Screams of agony, more pathetic than usual than the other ghostly wails, could be heard for miles.

--

Kenshin woke up, with Tomoe looking at him strangely.

"What's wrong?" she asked him, concerned.

"Nothing. I just got a weird dream. Like a vision or something."

"Oh. Okay." Tomoe said, obviously not wanting to dig in any deeper.

Kenshin settled back into his sleeping position. He just couldn't shake the feeling that he just saw his future, or something.

--

**Author's Note:** Something that just popped into my head. Stupid plot bunnies! Anyway, there were some severe references to Kenshin and Kaoru's relationship. I actually wasn't meaning to do that. I was trying to think up a combination of the two parents that would become the rurouni we know and love. Aki was his displeased, oro-ing side, while Kyoitchi was his clueless, peacemaking side. A cookie to whoever figures out where I got those names from.


End file.
